Blood of the Forgers
by OMNISENSE95
Summary: It's been almost a year since Bill was sealed away, and Dipper didn't think anything more could happen. How wrong he was. When his home world disappears right in front of his eyes, he discovers something more to his unknown heritage. With the help of the chosen wielder of the keyblade, can he find his friends and family before it's too late?
1. Dive into the Heart

**Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts and Gravity Falls are copyright to Disney**

 **Note: This story is set roughly a year after the end of the original TV series, so all Gravity Falls characters are a year older.**

 **Prologue**

 **Dive into the Heart**

He was falling… falling through the vast void of space, toward an unknown destination.

" _I've been having weird thoughts lately…_

… _Is any of this… even real?"_

His eyes suddenly shot open, and he found himself on the edge of the coast, the sun pounding into his eyes. He pulled his hat down, trying to shield himself from the harsh rays. Looking up at the ocean in front of him, he could just make out the shape of another boy, one he didn't know, a ways out into the water. The other boy seemed much older than him, with spiky white hair, dirty brown clothes, and dark skin. He wanted to try and say something to the other boy, but as he was taking a step, he noticed the water suddenly pull away from the shore. That could only mean…

His head shot up, confirming his concern; a massive tidal wave began to form at the far end of the ocean. The boy in the water showed no fear whatsoever. He merely turned around, revealing his sinister yellow eyes, holding his hand out for him to take. Without even thinking, he dashed towards the other boy, just as the wave came crashing down on him.

He spun around under the waves, staring ahead at the older boy, still unfazed, hand still held out for him to grasp. He tried to swim over to the older boy, but the current was too strong. In mere seconds, he was swept away, carried rapidly towards the surface.

He gasped for air as he broke the surface, shaking the water out of his hair. His attention turned back to the shore, where he found a girl the same age as him standing there, waving and calling out to him. Elated, he waded through the water over to her, a smile plastered on his face. As he reached the girl, she playfully punched him in the shoulder, grinning softly until her attention turned to the sky. Following her gaze, he discovered a figure falling towards the ocean before them. Staring closely at the figure, he realized that it was him.

Suddenly, he was in the place of his doppelganger, falling towards the sea below him. The girl reached her hand out to him in fear, her image rippling away as he broke through the surface.

He kept sinking, closer and closer to the ocean floor. He could see the bubbles passing him as he fell. Eventually, his descent began to slow down, allowing him to orient himself, his feet landing on something solid. It was at this moment that he realized something; he could still breathe. He glanced around the area, wondering what was going on. He tentatively took a step forward…

…and he was suddenly forced to shield his eyes as the ground below him erupted into a massive flock of doves, revealing a large platform made of stained glass at his feet. The platform depicted a beauty maiden, with ebony black her, blood red lips, and skin as white a fresh fallen snow, cradling an apple close to her mouth. She appeared to be asleep. He watched as the doves flew away into the darkness, dumbstruck at what had just happened.

Suddenly, a voice rang out through the void…

" _So much to do…"_ He looked around wildly, searching for whoever was talking. _"…so little time. Take your time. The door won't open just yet."_ What the heck is this voice talking about?

" _Now, step forward. Can you do it?"_

What, now they're asking if he can walk? Almost insulted, he strode to the center of the platform, and waited for the voice to speak up again. He looked up to the dark sky, expecting some sort of sign. From his peripheral vision, he saw a spark of light in front of him.

He looked ahead, and for a split second, he could have sworn he saw a boy with windswept, caramel brown hair before he disappeared. In his place, a small pillar appeared near the top edge of the platform. He turned in place to see two more pillars appear around him.

" _Power sleeps within you…"_ The voice spoke up again, as three weapons appeared, one above each pillar; a sword, a shield, and a staff. _"…if you give it form… it will give you strength. Now, what will you choose?"_

He glanced uneasily at each weapon, wondering what he should choose. Glancing at the shield, he tentatively walked over to it, and picked it up, holding it in his hands.

" _The power of the Guardian. Kindness to aid friends. A shield to repel all. Is this the power you seek?"_

Kindness was definitely one of his better qualities, but he thought the "shield to repel all" bit sounded cowardly somehow. Still unsure, he put the shield back, now going over to the staff.

" _The power of the Mystic. Inner Strength. A staff of wonder and ruin. Is this the power you seek?"_

This certainly appealed to him. Inner strength meant powers of the mind, and powers of the mind meant cunning, something he had in spades. Looking up, he spoke for the first time since his arrival.

"Yes." The staff suddenly burst into a flash of light, seeping into his chest.

" _Your path is set. Now, what will you give up in exchange?"_

What? Now he had to sacrifice one of these things? He glanced at the sword, deciding he should at least know the entire package before he made his final decision. He went over to the sword and picked it up.

" _The power of the Warrior. Invincible courage. A sword of terrible destruction. Give up this power?"_

He had to admit, the part about invincible courage sounded pretty badass, but the terrible destruction thing gave him reason to consider giving it up. Thinking back to the shield, he looked up to give his answer.

"Yes." The sword disappeared, the particles of light drifting into the void.

" _You have chosen the power of the Mystic. You've given up the power of the Warrior. Is this the form you choose?"_

"Yes, it is," he answered with conviction. He stumbled off the pillar as it suddenly started sinking into the platform. Looking around, he was horrified to see that the platform was breaking apart. Before he could react, the platform had shattered, sending him plummeting into the darkness.

Eventually, another platform came into view underneath him. Like the last one, it was made of stained glass, but it depicted a blonde woman in a silken white dress. She, too, appeared to be asleep. As he landed on the new platform, he noticed a blue haired young woman standing in front of him, but a split second later, she was gone. Before he could think about it, there was a flash of light in his hand as the staff he chose earlier appeared in it.

" _You have gained the power to fight."_ The voice spoke up again. He gazed at the staff in his hand, giving it a few test swings. He took a small battle stance, and began shadow boxing with his weapon. He panted lightly as he finished. He suddenly noticed small shadows appearing on the ground in front of him.

" _There will be times when you have to fight."_ The shadows suddenly rose from the ground in front of him, morphing into small, black creatures with glowing yellow eyes and crooked antennae on their heads. He was terrified at what was now before him, but quickly steeled himself, and began hacking into the monsters with his staff. He didn't noticed one of the creatures melt into the shadows and slink around him. _"Behind you!"_ Heeding the voice's warning, he twisted around on his heels, splitting the monster clean in two. Before he could do anything to the remaining monsters, they sunk into the platform, causing dark pools to appear across it. He suddenly found himself sinking into one of the pools. He struggled to get out, but it did him no good. He felt terrified for his life as his vision went black.

His eyes flung open, and he found himself in front of an old shack in the middle of the woods. He noticed three people positioned around the shack's porch.

" _Hang on. The door won't open just yet…"_ He heard that voice again. _"Now, tell me more about yourself."_ He didn't need much to figure out how he would do that. He walked over to the closest person, a teenage girl with long red hair.

"What's most important to you?" She asked him. He looked on as he contemplated his answer.

"My friends," He finally answered.

"Is friendship really such a big deal?" was her response. Ignoring that comment, he went over to the next person, a chubby man in a green shirt.

"What are you most afraid of?" he asked. This one, he actually had to analyze for a while before he could respond.

"I guess… being indecisive."

"Is being indecisive really that scary?" He went over to the final person, an old man in a black suit and a red fez.

"What do you want out of life?" the old man asked. This one was a no brainer.

"To see rare sights."

"To see rare sights, huh?"

" _You value friendship. You're afraid of being indecisive. You want to see rare sights. Your journey begins at midday. Keep a steady pace and you should be fine."_

"Sounds about right."

" _The day when the door will open is both far off and very near."_ He didn't understand what the voice meant by that, but before he could think about it, his vision went white. When it cleared, he found himself back in the dark void on yet another stained glass platform. This one depicted yet another sleeping woman. She was surrounded by thorny vines, and wore a red dress, clutching a rose to her chest. She seemed as beautiful as the last two women he saw on these platforms. Her hair was golden like the sunshine, her lips could shame a rose, and her sleeping face held an expression of bliss.

He looked up to briefly see a tall, muscled young man before he disappeared, leaving behind more of the black creatures he fought earlier. Having now become familiarized with their patterns, they were disposed of quickly.

When the last monster was disposed of, he noticed a spotlight appear in the center of the platform. He watched as it traveled to the edge of the platform, where is revealed a long, twisting ramp made of stained glass panels, leading to another platform in the distance. With no other leads, he proceeded up the ramp, never noticing the panels disappearing behind him.

Soon, he came upon the new platform. This one showed a beautiful, brown haired woman in a yellow dress, once more asleep, but behind her, he could see the image of a massive, brown furred beast. A strong light shined on the center of the platform. He walked slowly over to it, wondering what was supposed to happen now.

" _The closer you are to the light, the greater your shadow becomes."_ At the voice's words, he turned around to see that, indeed, his shadow was now massive. Suddenly, right before his eyes, his shadow rose up from the ground, beginning to morph into a different shape. He began to slowly back away from whatever this thing was, watching a pure black hand flex itself in the free air, staring at the twisted foot that planted itself on the ground. Terrified, he turned tail and fled, only to stop as he reached the edge of the platform. He turned around, staring at a massive monster, its head wrapped in a mass of black tentacles, leaving only its glowing yellow eyes visible to him. Smack dab in the middle of its torso was a giant, heart-shaped hole that he could see clean through. _"But don't be afraid…"_ The voice spoke up again. He whipped out the staff, deciding he wasn't going down without a fight.

The battle was long and hard, but eventually, he got the giant on the ropes. Before he could deal the final blow, his staff suddenly disappeared. In his brief moment of distraction, the monster brought a fist down in front of him. He stumbled back, falling into a pool of darkness, which rose up to entangle him.

" _But don't be afraid…"_ The massive monster loomed over him as the darkness ensnared him. He reached a hand out, hoping someone, anyone, would rescue him. _"…and don't forget!"_ He could stare ahead, absolutely terrified as his vision went black.

" _You are the one… with their blood in your veins…"_


	2. Bombshell

**Blood of the Forgers**

 **Chapter 1**

 **Bombshell**

* * *

I slowly blinked my eyes open, sitting up in the clearing I had dozed off in. I stared ahead sleepily, not really noticing anything in particular. I yawned in persistent drowsiness, and laid back down, only to find a girl suddenly staring down at me. Shocked fully awake, I jolted up, turning around to glare at her as she laughed to herself.

"Jeez, give me a break, Mabel," I protested to her prank.

"Dipper, Dipper, Dipper…" she chided softly. "I was wondering where you were…"

Yeah, before we go any further, I should probably introduce myself. My name is Dipper Pines. The girl standing in front of me, is my twin sister, Mabel. Yeah, we're pretty tight, the two of us. I can say that with absolute confidence after what happened last summer.

That year, our parents had shipped us to the sleepy town of Gravity Falls, Oregon, to live with our Grunkle (Great uncle) Stan in the woods for the summer. It looked like it would be a pretty boring summer… until one day, I found a strange journal in the woods, written by a person unknown. The journal detailed all the strange, supernatural things that resided in the town, and because of that journal, every day of that summer, Mabel and I had some pretty weird adventures.

Eventually, there came a day when Mabel and I learned something shocking about Grunkle Stan: he had a twin brother, who was the author of the journal I found. From then, the summer had turned into a desperate struggle to stop Bill Cipher, a dream demon that looked like the Eye of Providence with a cane and top hat, from opening a portal connecting our world to his, which would allow him to change reality as we know it as he pleases. He had almost succeeded, having devised a plan that would have driven a wedge between me and Mabel, but Mabel decided that she didn't want us to end up like our great uncles. She declared that no matter how far apart our lives took us, she wouldn't let anything destroy the bond we share. I realized shortly after that I felt the same way, and this gave me the strength I needed to finish a charm that would lock away the rift created by the author's dimensional gate, sealing Bill away… for a time, anyway. After that was over, Grunkle Ford decided to let his brother keep his old home, instead moving into an old lab a little further into the woods where he could continue his research.

It's been almost a year since then, and… well, quite a bit has changed since then. Mabel and I had both hit a growth spurt during the year (though Mabel is still one lousy centimeter taller than I am). I had stopped wearing my old vest in favor of a light green, sleeveless jacket with a white undershirt and blue jean-shorts. I still had that pine tree hat I got from the Mystery Shack last summer.

Mabel had changed her attire as well. She had gotten her braces out shortly after we had gone back to school, and started wearing her hair in a ponytail. Today's sweater was the red one with the shooting star on it.

Now, how about we get back to the present.

"Well… here I am. Sorry for worrying you." I turned away from her, sitting back down to stare off into the distance, thinking about that dream I just had. "What was that place? It felt so real…"

"Yeah, sure…" I heard Mabel comment behind me. "Vivid dream or not, we still need to pack, bro-bro."

I jolted to my feet at her words. I almost forgot; tomorrow, we're leaving back to Gravity Falls! I spun around to face her.

"Well, what are we waiting for!? I'll race you back home!"

"You're on, brosif."

We both crouched down, getting ready to make a mad dash back to our house here in Piedmont. At and unspoken signal, we took off running, and all thoughts of that weird dream escaped my mind. All I thought about was the friends and family we had waiting for us at Gravity Falls… Soos, Wendy, Candy and Grenda, Stan and Ford… even Robbie and Pacifica.

The trip back home seemed to go by in a blur, and before I knew it, Mabel had beaten me there, opening the front door with a look of triumph on her face. Waddles, her pet pig, ran up to meet her, squealing happily. I looked on from the porch, just watching my sister cuddle with her beloved pig for about a minute before heading up the stairs to our room.

I paused briefly as I past our parents' room, hearing Mom and Dad talking inside. Curious, I peered through the keyhole in the door, seeing my parents, Sandra and Jacob Pines, inside. Mom looked ashamed of something.

"Well, what is it, Sandra?" Dad halfway demanded of his wife. "What is it that you wanted to tell me?"

"Jacob…" Mom seemed almost hesitant to speak, and I half suspected guilt was the main reason she was telling Dad about this at all. Rather than say anything, she handed Dad a set of papers. He looked through them with an oblivious expression on his face.

"What are these?"

"DNA test results for the kids. You notice that a certain sequence is absent from one of the subjects of the test."

"And… what does that mean?"

"It means… you're not Dipper's father."

Dad recoiled in shock at Mom's statement, and I felt about ready to drop dead then and there. Dad isn't… dad? Mabel and I are only… half-siblings!?

"What? Sandra… what are you saying!?"

"I'm sorry, Jacob. The truth is… around the time the twins were born… I had an affair with another man!" I could practically hear Dad's heart shattering into a million pieces at her words. I backed away from the door in shock, somehow still hearing Mom's confession. "It was the day after that party you took me to. I was still somewhat dipsy from the night before, and I stumbled upon him. I don't remember much about him, just that he had a tattoo of the constellation of Orion the Hunter on his right shoulder… then he invited me to a hotel he was staying at… we… had the affair… then he just left, and I never saw him again."

I ran off before anything more could be said, hoping to make it to the bedroom I shared with my sister before I was caught eavesdropping on my parents. I closed the door just as I heard Dad storm out of his room, Mom crying out behind him. Why do I get the feeling he's looking to file for divorce over this?

I moaned and went ahead with packing for the trip tomorrow, but my head was still on the bombshell that just dropped… I'm a bastard child of some sleazy two-timer who sank his teeth into my mother for a one-night thing… Dad is more than likely going to file for divorce because of me… I just didn't want to believe it… but there's no denying the hard evidence she presented… I felt so ashamed…

I was broken out of my thoughts when I heard the bedroom door open, yelping in shock as I whirled around, only to see Mabel standing in the door, Waddles in her arms.

"Yeesh, sorry for barging in," she muttered, setting the pig down, and going about her own packing. "Hey, before I forget, you might want to stay away from Dad until we leave. I saw him a little earlier and he seemed pretty upset."

I stiffened slightly as she mentioned Dad being upset. "Over what?" I asked needlessly; I knew exactly what he was upset about.

"I don't know… He just stormed past me with saying anything… then I heard him start the car and drive off…"

"L-look, Mabel, let's just get our bags packed and go to bed, okay?" I hastily went back to stuffing clothes in my bag. Mabel just stared at me for a few seconds, before deciding to drop it, and doing the same as I was. She would bring this up again tomorrow morning, I was sure of it. Well, hopefully, once we actually get to Gravity Falls tomorrow, we'll forget all about it. After all, with a place as supernaturally rich as Gravity Falls, there are bound to be a lot of distractions. Furthermore, Bill is still sealed, so nothing life-threatening could possibly happen…

I had no idea how wrong I was there…


	3. Apocalypse of Gravity Falls

**Blood of the Forgers**

 **Chapter 2**

 **Apocalypse of Gravity Falls**

* * *

 **Dipper's POV**

I just stared through the window, barely registering the scenery rolling past as the bus continued on. I was still thinking about what I learned last night… Jacob Pines isn't my father… how could Mom have done that to him?

I felt Mabel shake my shoulder, so I looked over to her. Her sweater for today was a black one with a white keyhole in the center of the chest.

"Hey, is something wrong, Dipper?" She asked me. "You've been down since last night, when we were packing."

"Well…" I muttered, contemplating whether or not I should tell her about Mom's affair… how can I tell her when I don't want to believe it myself? Why should she take it in stride when I can't?

"Dipper…" I looked at her quizzically. She reached into her pocket, and pulled something out. "You remember what this is, don't you?" I remembered it perfectly well. What she had in her hand was a pink, spherical crystal the size of her fist, in the center of which, there was a big discoloration that looked like a shooting star; her Dream Crystal. I reached into my jacket, pulling out my own Dream Crystal. Mine was blue and prism shaped, with the discoloration resembling a pine tree. "These crystals are the mark of the ten Dream Keepers; Mabel Pines, Dipper Pines, Stanley Pines, Stanford Pines, Soos Ramirez, Wendy Corduroy, Robbie Valentino, Pacifica Northwest, Fiddleford McGucket, Gideon Gleeful. The ten of us made a vow that day last year… you and I made a vow that day… that no matter what happened, we would trust each other... that we would always be there for each other." She paused, and I just stared at the crystal in my hand, watching the light reflect off its surface. "You and I are more than that, Dipper. No matter what happens, I'll always be there for you, and you'll always be there for me. You're my brother, Dipper. Nothing will change that, alright?"

I felt tears running down my face at her words. She's right. No matter what. She'll be there for me, and I'll be there for her… I put my Dream Crystal away and wiped my eyes, looking her dead in the eye.

"Thanks…" I told her. "I needed that."

"No problem, Dipping Sauce," she replied. I chuckled slightly at that overused pet name. "So… you ready to tell me what's wrong?"

I was still hesitant… but it's probably best that she hears this from me rather than from Dad when we get back. So I told her about what I learned last night… about Mom's affair, and Dad not being my father. Mabel looked absolutely horrified by the time I was finished… at what, I wasn't exactly sure. She just stared at me with tears in her eyes for a few seconds after I finished, before pulling me into a comforting hug, crying into my shoulder. We just sat there, comforting each other for the rest of the trip to Gravity Falls.

* * *

 **Mabel's POV**

I couldn't believe it… how could Mom have done that to Dad…? And Dipper… he must have felt terrible after hearing that… I felt my heart rip in half when he told me we were only half-siblings. The knowledge must have been tearing him apart inside.

We sat there in the back of the bus, comforting each other. I was so lost in thought I almost missed it when the driver announced that we had arrived at Gravity Falls. Fortunately, Dipper did catch it, and with his lead, we gathered our bags and Waddles' pet carrier, and climbed off the bus and into the sleepy, supernatural town in northwestern Oregon. With a smile on my face, I began down the familiar trail into the woods, towards the Mystery Shack. Okay, I admit it, after nearly a year away, I didn't exactly remember where the Mystery Shack was, but the thing about the Dream Crystals… apparently, they can react to one another. We used that to lead us to Grunkle Stan's Crystal, which would logically be on his person. We were a good ways into the woods before the sub-par tourist trap came into view… then suddenly-

"SURPRISE!"

Dipper and I stumbled back slightly as a large group of people jumped out of the trees, bringing with them the obvious evidence of a party. I recovered first, gazing around the assembled crowd in happiness. My friends Candy and Grenda were near the front of the crowd, next to Pacifica. Behind them stood Wendy and Robbie, who had one arm draped over Tambry's shoulders. Nate, Lee, and Thompson stood at the opposite end of the crowd, in front of Soos, Stan, and Ford. The only two Dream Keepers who weren't present were Old Man McGucket and Gideon… which made a lot of sense, since McGucket died to help seal Bill away, and Gideon… well, despite the vow he made with the rest of us… he still hates my family. I ran over to my friends, hugging Grenda in delight at finally seeing her again (nothing romantic, I assure you) while Dips went over to Grunkle Ford, most likely to ask about his research into the Dream Crystals.

Candy, Grenda, Pacifica and I spent a lot of time talking about girl stuff, while Dipper was hanging out with Wendy and her group of friends. Pacifica had improved quite a lot since Dipper and I left last year. After helping to seal Bill away, she outright told her parents that she was ashamed of them, believe it or not, to their faces. Neither of them could believe what they had just heard, and effectively disowned her. And you know what Pacifica did? She smiled, and laughed joyously, running out of the manor with a spring in her step. She moved in with Candy, and got a job working at the Mystery Shack. Sure, she struggled with the "commoner's life" for a while, but eventually got used to it. She even admitted that she enjoyed her job… even if she was being paid less than minimum wage.

On top of that, she and the other Dream Keepers have been helping with Grunkle Ford's research, helping perform experiments with each of their Dream Crystals. Most of them just reaffirmed what little we already knew about them, and the rest… yeah, Dipper would understand them better than me.

Eventually, I noticed a storm start to form in the distance, and pointed it out to the others. We moved the party inside… but Dipper had a bad feeling about the storm. Probably just being paranoid.

The party died down after a few hours, and everyone went home, allowing me and Dipper to get settled back into the attic of the Mystery Shack. Shortly after that, night fell, and the storm that I saw earlier hit us hard. But… thing was, this wasn't an ordinary storm… I could tell by the gigantic dark orb in the sky, and the strange black monsters that started to appear around the shack. Everything was a blur to me… it all happened so fast. One moment, I'm fighting off those weird things using a pistol formed from my Dream Crystal, the next, I see the ground begin to break apart and drift into the massive orb in the sky, then I see the other still-living Dream Keepers (minus Gideon, for some reason) on individual pieces of land floating close to the orb, then I warn Dipper of a gigantic black monster on the same platform as him, then suddenly… everyone is dragged into the orb… and I just black out…


	4. Traverse Town

**Blood of the Forgers**

 **Chapter 3**

 **Traverse Town**

* * *

 **Dipper's POV**

Ugh… what hit me? I felt a strange weight on my back as I came to. What happened? The last thing I remember was fighting the same black monster from that dream I had the other night… and then…

Wait… what happened to the others? I pushed myself off the cobblestoned ground, and I noticed I was in an alleyway of some strange town I didn't recognize. There was a barred-off waterway at the far end of the alley, and I noticed the back of a hotel to my right. I tried to stand up, but something threw me off-balance, and I nearly fell back down. My shirt and jacket fell to the ground around me in pieces. When I looked back over my shoulder, I saw why…

I HAD TWO MASSIVE WHITE WINGS GROWING FROM MY SHOULDER BLADES!

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

After screaming my lungs out at this insane discovery, I fell onto my hands and knees, the weight of the wings pressing down on me.

Why did this happen to me? What did I do to deserve this? I looked at the remains of my upper garments, ruined by the growth of these wings. I sighed heavily before gathering them up, slipping my Dream Crystal into the pocket of my jeans, and walking down towards the waterway I saw.

As I got closer, I noticed an offshoot leading to the backdoor of a large house. I knocked on the door a bit, and when no one answered, I let myself in. The room I was in was well furnished, with a nice television set in the corner, but otherwise completely empty. I walked right through that into the next room, which seemed to be a dining room, from what I saw, after which I came across a living room. Both of these rooms were as empty as the TV room. As I walked into the next room, I noticed a grand piano in the corner, but at the side of the room, I saw a pair of adult Dalmatians, one male and one female based on the colors of their collars. They seemed very sad or some reason, so I went over to them, kneeling down to their level.

"Hey…" I said softly, both of them looking up to meet my eyes. "…is something wrong?" The male dog raised an eyebrow at my question. He seemed pretty intelligent… he must be confused as to why I was asking him, a dog, if something was wrong. Mabel must have rubbed off on me.

A frown returned to his face as he pointed his nose at a picture on the wall. It was of the two adult Dalmatians, along with nine rows of eleven puppies. Ninety-nine puppies and both parents… one-hundred and one dogs to look after!? Jeez, their owners must be loaded. But at least I could see why they were bummed out.

"I see… you miss your puppies, huh?" They both seemed to sigh in despair, hanging their heads again. "Hey… I'm trying to find my family too… you two must feel terrible… so…" I paused to read their name tags. "…Pongo… Perdita… if it means anything, I'll see if I can find your puppies while I'm at it, okay?" They both perked up slightly at the gesture, and Pongo, the male Dalmatian, nodded in thanks. Happy with this promise, I left the house, entering a large, two level plaza with a fountain at one end, and a massive building with a bell on the roof at the other. I felt the wings bristle slightly in a small breeze… I don't know how the heck I'm supposed to get used to these things. I noticed a tailor's on the upper level of the plaza, so I made my way over, wondering why the place seemed to be empty. What I was even more startled by was getting dragged into the tailor's store before I could even knock.

It was only now that I could get a good look at the guy who dragged me inside. He was a blonde haired young man, probably eighteen or nineteen years old and very short for his age (I was just barely taller than him, and I'm six years younger than him). He was wearing a green silk vest with no undershirt, white gloves, and long blue pants that lead to a pair of brown leather boots. He looked up at me with a sort of scalding expression.

"What in the name of all that is holy were you doing outside!?" He asked hotly. "It's not safe to be wandering around the Second District all alone!"

"Second District?" I responded. "What are you talking about?" He looked at me with a sympathetic expression all of a sudden.

"I get it… you're new here, aren't you? Well, let me be the first to welcome you to Traverse Town, a safe haven for those whose homes have been lost."

Those whose homes have been lost… Gravity Falls was gone… What happened to…?

"Wait… what about… what about my friends and family!?"

"I don't know… I just don't know… not many people have the strength needed to survive their world's destruction."

"Then… My friends… and my family… my sister…" I stared at the floor in despair, falling to my knees, ready to cry. I felt a hand on my shoulder before I actually could, and looked up at the short man.

"Hey… you just said you had a sister, right?"

"Yeah…"

"Then there's a good chance she survived as well, if she's anything like you."

"Thanks. I bet the other seven Dream Keepers survived as well. I have to keep looking for them." My eyes landed on the remains of my shirt and jacket. "Uh… but first…" I looked up at the older shorty. "Do you think you could repair these… while accommodating it for…?" I trailed off, glancing back at the wings on my back. The older boy took the tattered remains of my clothes from me, nodding in confirmation.

"I'll see what I can do, kid."

"I have a name, you know. It's Dipper. Dipper Pines."

"Nice to meet you. I'm Zidane Tribal, master tailor, and part-time thief."

Part-time thief? That worried me a little. He turned away from me to get to work repairing my clothes, and I noticed that he had a golden monkey-like tail sticking out of a small hole in his pants. At least it explained why he didn't ask me about my new wings. Ugh, that still sounds weird… and I should be used to weird after spending three months in a place like Gravity Falls.

"You know…" I heard Zidane mutter under his breath as he started taking my measurements. "With those wings, you kind of remind me of someone I knew from back home."

"Who?"

"My friend's girlfriend." He just left it at that, and said nothing more until he noticed me staring at him questioningly. "Don't tell Leon I mentioned her."

"Okay… uh, Zidane… mind telling me what the heck is going on here?"

He sighed heavily as he started sewing my shirt back together. "Dipper, you're a smart boy, aren't you?" I nodded in affirmation. "You've probably figured out by now that there are other worlds out there, besides your old home and this town, right?"

"That's pretty obvious… but no one is supposed to know that, am I right?"

"Exactly. The secret could be kept, because the worlds were blocked off from each other… then the Heartless appeared… and everything changed."

"The Heartless? You mean those black monsters I saw when my world disappeared?"

"That's right. Those without hearts, devoid of emotion… they are beings born of darkness, attracted by the darkness in people's hearts. And there is darkness… in every heart."

I just stood there, bare chested with wings growing from my back, contemplating Zidane's words. We lapsed into silence for a while before Zidane spoke again.

"Hey… do you know anything about a man named 'Ansem'?"

"Ansem? No, can't say I do… who is he?"

"A wise man who studied the Heartless. He recorded his findings in a detailed report. I'd show it to you, but its pages were scattered."

"I assume you mean they were scattered to numerous worlds?"

"Bingo."

I thought back to my world's destruction, namely, the innumerable fights with those Heartless things. I remembered a small observation I made at the time.

"Conventional weaponry is completely ineffective against the Heartless," I mumbled loud enough for Zidane to hear me. I took my Dream Crystal out of my pocket, activating the ethereal blade formed from it. "…but magical weapons like my Dream Crystal can slice clean through them."

"You know what's even more effective? The keyblade."

"The what-now?"

"The keyblade… it's the only thing that can truly destroy the Heartless. But possession alone is a double edged sword, sense the Heartless can use the keyblade to track down strong hearts. Whoever is chosen by the keyblade will be the only one capable of fighting the Heartless on a level field. You want to find your friends and family? You need to find the wielder of the keyblade first."

I adjusted my hat as I nodded in understanding. Zidane handed me my finished clothes, and after a lot of struggling around the god-forsaken wings, I finally got my shirt and jacket on. They both now had slits cut in the back so that the wings could be allowed out. I sighed heavily as I remembered this new burden I had to bear. "Anyway… how much do I owe you?"

"You know what? It's on the house this time."

"Really? Th… wait a minute… you stole my wallet just now, didn't you?" Zidane handed me my wallet with a sheepish look on his face. Man, he's good.

"It's useless to me, anyway. We only take munny here."

"You wouldn't happen to know where I can find a currency exchange place in this town, would you."

Before Zidane could answer, he gasped in shock, and pushed me to the ground as something flew over our heads. I looked up in time to see a tall, armored monster with a symbol on its chest, of a heart with a barbed X going through it. A Heartless, no doubt about it.

"Dipper, run!" Zidane ordered, pulling a pair of daggers from his sides. "Their leader must be around here somewhere. You head to the Third District, and start looking there! I'll catch up with you!"

Before I could say anything, Zidane charged the Heartless, slashing at it with his daggers. Reluctantly, I nodded in understanding, whipping out my Dream Crystal and Jumping out the smashed window of the shop.

Outside, there were a large number of these things gathered around the shop, so I lunged at the closet one, opening a gap in the wall that I immediately dashed through, rushing down an alleyway behind the tailor's and lead to a set of doors with the words "Third District" printed above them.

I dashed through the doors, and ran down to the large plaza at the bottom of a set of stairs. I glanced around the area, taking not of the fountain in the corner of the plaza, the broken electrical wire off to the side, and the weird door with a fire symbol on it at the opposite end.

Shortly, I heard someone running up behind me, followed shortly by two people screaming in terror as if falling from a large height, followed by a boy noticing said individuals about to land on him, followed by him not getting away in time. I spun around to see a boy about a year older than me with spiky, dark brown hair and stunning blue eyes piled under an anthropomorphic duck in blue clothes and a tall, anthropomorphic dog in a green turtleneck and modest hat. I ran over to the pile of bodies, kneeling down in front of the boy.

"Hey, are you guys okay?"

"I'll live…" the boy muttered in response. I was about to reach over to him and over a hand, but then I noticed that he had something in his hand; a giant, silver skeleton key with a yellow guard, and a silver keychain that resembled a mouse head.

"Is that…?"

"The key!" Both the dog and the duck exclaimed in happiness. At that moment, the plaza suddenly began to shake, prompting us to look around the area in concern. I shuddered as several massive pillars rose from the ground, numerous Heartless appearing on top of them. The three strangers immediately got off of each other, all four of us preparing for battle. I held my Dream Crystal at the ready while the other boy held that massive key, which had to be the Keyblade, in both hands over to his right side, the duck wielding a short staff, and the dog hiding behind a small shield. Between the four of us, these grunts were short work… although I wasn't exactly impressed with the other boy's fighting style. There was no finesse to it whatsoever.

There was a short calm period after the last of the helmeted Heartless, which I had dubbed "Soldiers" was defeated, so I took a moment to look of the keyblade wielder. He had a silver crown charm around his neck, and had on a white shirt under a black vest, baggy red shorts, and gigantic yellow shoes.

It was just then that I heard something, and all four of us looked up at once to see a giant suit of dark purple, disjointed armor fall in front of us, assembling itself before the helmet fell into place just above the torso. The symbol I saw on the Soldiers was emblazoned in the middle of the torso. This thing was what I would later christen the Guard Armor.

The four of us got into a battle position as the Guard Armor began to lumber forward, its feet threatening to crush us. I jumped out of the way while the other boy started hacking away at the right foot. At that moment, the arms began to revolve around the main body, knocking him away. I rushed over to try and help him, but the still spinning arms hit me as well, and I stumbled backwards in a daze. Its feet started moving forward again, almost crushing me, but the dog rushed in front of me and used his shield to block the feet.

"Thanks," I muttered.

"Yer welcome," the dog replied. I stepped around him and lunged at left foot, burying the crystal up to the hilt in the armor. I pulled it out just as a small ball of fire hit the same foot, destroying it. I looked over at the duck as he sent another fireball from the tip of his staff at the other foot at the same time the keyblade wielder finished a combo on it, their combined attack finishing the foot off.

I looked on as the dog suddenly started spinning like a top with his shield held out, slicing the Guard Armor's left arm, so I started hacking away at the right arm, just as they started spinning, knocking both of us away. Jeez, it really hurt that time.

"Don't give up!" I heard the duck shout as he tossed me a small, green bottle. I downed the contents of the bottle, immediately feeling better. I leapt back to my feet as I saw the keyblade wielder shatter the left arm, and I took out the right shortly after. With a good helping of teamwork, the torso was eliminated as well, and fell to the ground, releasing a large heart into the sky.

"So… you were looking for me?" the other boy asked a little while later, after the duck, the dog and I finished explaining everything.

"Exactly," I heard another voice speak up. We all looked towards the entrance of the district, and standing there was Zidane, along with a young man in black and a black haired girl in her late teens. "They too have been seeking the wielder of the keyblade." It was the man in black who was speaking.

"Hey, why don't you two come with us?" the dog asked. "We can go to other worlds on our vessel."

"If I went with you… could I find my friends?"

"Of course!" The duck chimed up, a bit too quickly if you ask me. But, this is also the only shot I have at finding the other Dream Keepers. I tuned out everything else for a moment as I thought over what was happening right now. I glanced at the keyblade wielder, wondering what the weapon WAS as the core of things. I snapped but to focus when the duck told us that their ship "runs on happy faces", to which the other boy pulled out this extremely forced smile, causing the rest of us to crack up.

"Well… I guess it's official now," I commented after pulling myself together. "We're traveling as a team." I held my hand out in front of me. "I'm Dipper. Dipper Pines."

"Donald Duck." The duck placed his hand on top of mine.

"Name's Goofy." The dog added his hand to the pile.

"I'm Sora." The wielder of the keyblade placed his hand at the top of the pile, finalizing our initiation as a team. "All for one, and one for all."


	5. Down the Rabbit Hole

**Blood of the Forgers**

 **Chapter 4**

 **Down the Rabbit Hole**

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 **Sora's POV**

After receiving some farewell gifts from Leon and the others, learning a magic spell from Donald, and perfecting the Dodge Roll, the four of us headed over to the exit of the First District, where Donald and Goofy's ship was docked. Dipper and I could only stand there, staring at the ship in awe, taking in the red blocks that made up the majority of the body, the yellow strip near the tip of the nose, and the dome-shaped cockpit at the top of the ship.

"Oh my god…" I heard Dipper mutter under his breath. He suddenly dashed forward, looking like a kid left alone in a candy store as he excitedly examined every square inch of the ship, speaking so fast I couldn't understand a word. It got even worse when he saw the interior of the ship. He was running around completely detached from reality until he hit his head on a low-hanging pipe. I ran to his side in concern.

"You okay?" I asked him.

"Yeah… I'm fine," he answered back. Donald led us to the cockpit shortly after this, ending any further fanboy moments he could have had. Donald took a seat at the front of the cockpit, where the controls were, Goofy sitting off to the side a little. Dipper and I sat in the back, though I noticed Dipper had a hard time getting comfortable because of those wings on his back.

"Uh, Dipper, wouldn't it be easier for you to just take the wings off before getting into your seat?" I asked him. He looked at me strangely at that question. Suddenly, however, he started chuckling humorlessly.

"Oh, I get it… you think these wings are fake, don't you?" I nodded hesitantly. "WELL, THEY'RE NOT!" He was getting right up in my face now. "I WOKE UP IN THAT TOWN WITH THESE THINGS SPROUTING FROM MY BACK! I HAD TO GET MY SHIRT AND JACKET TAILORED TO ACCOMDATE THEM! DO YOU HONESTLY THINK I ENJOY HAVING THESE THINGS!? DO YOU!?" Donald and Goofy were staring at us now. I pushed him away from my face as calmly as I could.

"Dipper, calm down. It's not like you have those wings because of me." He took several deep breaths to calm himself down before responding.

"You're right. Sorry for flipping out on you like that." He mumbled, finally getting comfortable in his chair. "Oh… I almost forgot, we're all looking for someone, right?" Donald, Goofy and I all nodded. "Well, who exactly are we each looking for?"

"Well, Donald and I are tryin' to find The King of our home world," Goofy responded. "He left to investigate why the stars were disappearin'."

"Right… we're looking for a king… what about you, Sora?"

"I'm looking for my friends from my island. Their names are Riku and Kairi." I answered. "What about you?"

"Well… there are seven people I should be looking for," Dipper started. "I'm part of a group known as the Dream Keepers. There were originally ten of us, including me, but two of them aren't in anymore. One of them is dead, and I'm pretty sure the other fell victim to the Heartless." He paused to pull out the crystal I saw him use against the Heartless from earlier. "They'll all have crystals similar to the one I have." I nodded in understanding. But, since that's still a lot of people to look for, I wanted to know the ones that took the highest priority for him.

"Um, Dipper… which of these 'Dream Keepers' are you worried about the most?" I asked. He looked down before he answered.

"The one I'm worried about the most is… my twin sister, Mabel."

"Your sister?"

He nodded solemnly, but before anything more could be said, the ship began to take off, and I was immediately drawn to the view passing by through the window.

I wanted to take a moment to speak with Dipper a little more, but Heartless ships started coming into view right then, and I was interrupted by the beginnings of an interstellar dogfight.

Eventually, we arrived at a new world, one the Gummi Ship's computer identified as "Wonderland". Donald parked the ship near the world, preparing to disembark. I exited the ship first… or at least, I would have been, if the ship hadn't been parked in the middle of a big hole going I-don't-even-know-how-deep. But then Dipper bumped into my back, Donald bumped into him, and Goofy crashed into him, sending all four of us falling into the hole.

"Gwarsh…" was the only comment Goofy had on the situation at hand. It was right about then that I noticed that we were falling pretty slowly… a little TOO slowly to be obeying the laws of physics.

"Well… anyone want to pass the time by telling stories or something?" Dipper asked, prompting Donald, Goofy and I to stare at him oddly. "Believe it or not, this isn't the first time I fell down an infinitely deep hole in the ground." As we continued falling, we it started getting dark, but Dipper switched on a lamp that just so happened to have been suspended in the air right next to him. "Though last time, there weren't random pieces of furniture littered around the sides of the hole."

"You talk as if it's completely normal," I noted.

"It's not. But then again, I did have to deal with a carpet that can switch people's minds… and a horde of gnomes that wanted my sister for their queen… and the crazed AI that developed an obsessive crush on my friend…"

"AI?"

"…and those weird crystals that shrink and grow things… and a bloodthirsty monster made of candy… and those wax figurines that came to life at night… and a vengeful lumberjack ghost that was always rhyming and turned me and several aristocrats to wood… and a five-hour zombie apocalypse… and this insane cult that tried to forcefully make me and my friends forget everything I mentioned earlier… and a merman my sister had a crush on… and a shapeshifting monster… and-"

"We get it," I interrupted him. "We get it, your home world was messed up."

He looked ready to say something more, but he suddenly glanced down. "Hey, looks like we're reaching the bottom." I glanced down at his words, and indeed, we were getting close to what had to be the bottom of the hole. Thanks to how slowly we were falling, we were able to land safely on the ground… except Goofy, who somehow managed to fumble around at the last second, and landed on his stomach. Before I could really register that, I saw something incredible, something bizarre, something I never thought I would sever see: a white rabbit in a waistcoat rushing past us.

"Oh, my fur and whiskers!" I heard him shout to himself. "I'm late! I'm late! I'M LATE!" We could only stare after the rabbit in confusion. "I'm here! I should be there! Oh, this is really bad! Oh, the queen! She'll have my head for sure!"

"…Should we follow him?" Dipper asked seconds after the rabbit disappeared around the corner.

"I don't think there's much else we can do right now," was all I said in response. "But we might have to save it for the next chapter, the fans are getting a little edgy."

"What?"

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 **Please review.**


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